They're not Horses, They're Unicorns
by TheDeviant
Summary: How could a prince feel something like love for a stupid stable boy? How could that stable boy feel such liking for an arrogant prince? Two polar opposites may be connected in more ways then the eyes can see. Sasunaru
1. Chapter 1

A/N- Another story to help cure my story ADD!!! Yay! I am excited about this one too, though it should prove to be relatively short, it is gonna be **–drumroll- FLUFFY!!!!!!** I don't know why, but after writing more for 'It was always lonely Here', my other fic, I feel the need to write something happy and kinda humor-ish… but still fluffy… hehe. Be excited!

Warnings: Itachi's hotness may cause Fangirls to have sudden blood loss to their brains. Please use caution Fangirls, I need you to review, and if you die on me I will be so sad…

Disclaimer: I NO OWN NUTTIN! Not Naruto, and not the song by "bayside" (which is an amazing band) that I used for the title of this story.

Hope you enjoy.

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**Chapter 1**

It was almost midnight on a crisp winter's day when I was taken in. I suppose they must have caught me in the fields playing with the horses, and when I saw them coming towards me on their well-bred mounts, I started running.

Surely they would punish an orphan like me for touching someone's horse. The beast had more value on it than I ever did.

Hell, those horses probably cost more money than I had ever even considered possible.

So I ran from them.

I really should have thought through such a silly thing before I ran. Its not like I, a small twelve year old boy who's legs had just begun to grow awkward with puberty would be able to outrun an animal bred for running.

So it isn't surprising that they caught up with me within seconds.

I looked up at my pursuers, only to realize that I was in even more trouble than I originally thought.

The man in front of me was the king of my country. His red eyes peered down at me through ebony lashes, his dark hair tied back with a crimson silken chord that looked as though it might slip from the well groomed locks at any moment. The man was drop dead gorgeous, but had a killer's aura that didn't seem to leave him even when he smiled (quite fakely) down at me.

I shrank back in fear from him, only to realize that the others that were riding with him (most likely out hunting together) had snuck up behind me and blocked me in.

I was so scared. This is the man who killed his entire family save one person to gain the throne. King Itachi, who was famous for releasing slaves simply to hunt them down on horseback like you would a deer. It was even rumored that after he had cut down his human quarry he would have them stuffed and put on his castle walls next to the various beasts that had the misfortune of encountering him previously.

" What is your name, child? You should know it is illegal for common scum to touch purebred animals of the court. What has brought you out to my fields?"

The King's voice was smooth and dark, and I dropped to my knees in front of him, letting my overgrown blond hair to touch the ground as I answered him. (As one MUST answer the king, for fear of death…or worse)

"Y-your H-h-highness," I stuttered stupidly, scared out of my mind. One of the men behind me laughed at my distress, but quickly silenced at an angry look from those dreadful red eyes.

"Speak now child, and do not stutter, I will not allow a half-wit to live."

I shivered, " Your highness," I spoke clearly this time, " My name is Naruto, milord, Uzumaki Naruto. Please forgive me, I just wanted to meet the horses, they are beautiful."

The King started laughing, any anger vanishing from his face, though the killer aura was still there accompanied with amusement.

"You wanted to meet the horses?" He questioned and I nodded in response. This brought a short laugh from him, much to my humiliation. Why was he laughing at me?

" Boy, you may stand up. I have never met someone who _wanted_ to be in a field with over twelve war-horses who are trained to attack anyone and everyone but their masters and trainers. Much less have I seen those animals act more docile then they are in your presence." I was shocked. I hadn't really thought that these horses were _war_horses. I just thought they were pretty and treated them like any other creature I would come across.

"Do you have any family Naruto?" The use of my name shocked me from my thoughts and I responded with a quick shake of my head, informing him that I had been an orphan since my mother died giving birth to me.

He nodded seemingly to himself, as if confirming something in his mind.

"Naruto, you will be my personal stable boy from this moment on."

He turned his great black horse around, expecting me to follow, which I did cautiously, my jaw hanging down in disbelief.

What the hell did I just get myself into?

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A/N- YAY! I hope that you all liked this so far! Naruto is itachi's stable boy! GASP! Now that's a job I wouldn't mind having…

Review review review

**Note: I like cookies. **


	2. Chapter 2

A/N- Oh my holy hell, I actually had inspiration for this story! Yay! It is one of those stories that comes and goes, and it is really fun to write when I am driven enough to write it. So yay. Happy Update everyone, if you harass me enough I will update within the week!!!

Warnings: Cliché horse names…

Disclaimer: I own nothing. I mean, obviously..

Hope you enjoy.

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Chapter 2

Naruto looked about himself nervously. He didn't know what he was going to do about his new situation. He didn't even know if he wanted to do anything but go along with it.

Who knows, maybe being able to even be near the King's gorgeous horses would be worth it.

The blond had always loved being near horses anyway, mainly because they were so misunderstood and oddly like him. Those who had never worked with the animals assume that they are self-confident animals, proud and beautiful, just like people just assumed he was a headstrong and overly prideful orphan.

The sad reality was that both him and the animals were insecure when alone, and like each other they longed for a 'herd' to surround them and make them feel safe.

Now he would have his own family, and it didn't matter if they were human or not… it was still the closest thing he had ever had to one.

Naruto was stirred out of his thoughts when he face connected with the butt of the great black horse in front of him. He jumped to the side quickly, narrowly avoiding an angry kick directed his way from the offended beast.

The king smirked down at him and he blushed furiously, bowing to Itachi.

"Sorry Highness, I didn't mean to anger your horse… I was just.." Naruto looked up at that moment to see a magnificent stable right in front of him. "Beautiful…" he whispered in an awed voice.

Itachi rose an eyebrow at the boy. Maybe he had made a mistake in picking up this boy from the field, for he seemed like a complete idiot with a short attention span. Oh well, whatever got the horses taken care of.

"Listen up boy," He said as he dismounted his gigantic black gelding. The horse swung his head in irritation and Naruto went to stroke the horse soothingly without even registering what he was doing. The horse settled quickly under the gentle caresses, and Naruto's ears picked up chuckling coming from nearby.

He suddenly realized what he was doing when he saw the beautiful face of his country's ruler twisted into something that resembled a smile.

"It seems that you do have a way with horses, Naruto. Now if you will lead Dark (a/n Itachi isn't very creative when it comes to naming horses…) I will show you where you will be staying and tell you what I expect of you."

The blond nodded, taking Dark's reins and walking behind the king. He hadn't expected Itachi to show him around. That seemed far beneath something a noble would do, and from all the descriptions that Naruto had ever heard, Itachi was not one to casually show someone around.

Who knew though. Perhaps it had just been idle gossip..

The king and boy entered the stables through two great wooden doors and were greeted by soft sounds of rustling hay and swishing tails. The air was sweet and fresh, not the typical smell of horse crap that Naruto usually associated with barns. It was, after all, the most common odor in the cheap stable outside of the pub where he had so often made his bed in the soiled hay.

Itachi gestured towards a stall, "This is Dark's stall, when you are done grooming him, return him here and make sure that it is clean. Servants typically clean the stalls in the morning and evening, and I will expect you to take care of any mess in between."

He continued walking to the next stall, where another huge black stallion stood in the corner, nibbling at a large pile of hay. Itachi motioned at the four stalls next to Dark's. "The horse on the far left is Night, followed by Black, Coal, and Satan."

Naruto peered at the four horses, stifling a laugh just before it left his throat. All four horses were practically identical except for leg and face markings. The king must definitely have something for the color black…

Itachi just kept walking though, and Naruto struggled on his short legs to catch up with Dark walking next to him.

"I will have a cot put into one of my horses' stalls for you. You may choose which you prefer as a roommate, though I wouldn't recommend Satan, as he earned his name. You can get one meal a day directly from the kitchen door to the courtyard. There is no reason for you to be inside the castle at anytime or you will be punished severely. Also, if you do a good job then you will be given more meals, and perhaps your own stall."

"Yes Highness"

"Every morning you will wake up at four o' clock sharp and groom all of my horses. Exercise the ones I do not use or put them into one of the high-fenced pastures, as I would rather the stallions not cause any trouble. Clean all of my tack daily, whether it is used or not." Itachi stopped for a second as if in deep thought, then looked back at the blond boy, whom was mentally recording all of his duties.

"That is all I can think of for now. I will have your cot sent down shortly, and I will leave it to you to find the kitchens and outdoor bathing facilities."

With that, the beautiful king swept out of the stables, leaving Naruto to groom Dark.

"I guess we are going to become good friends then Dark." Naruto grinned as he found un-tacked the horse and started to groom him.

The 'fearsome warhorse' nickered in response and persisted to push his head lightly against the blond boy, wanting his face to be rubbed.

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The night was terrible.

Naruto had put his cot into Dark's stall (which was around the size of a large apartment), and settled down happily under warm blankets, enjoying the peace of the stables.

And the Satan had started causing trouble. And by "causing trouble", he meant "kicking the stall door every four seconds and screeching so loud that nobody had a chance at sleeping."

Needless to say… Naruto was annoyed.

He had already tried yelling "shut up!" a few times… but he knew it wouldn't work, he just didn't want to get up. He did have to be up inhumanly early after-all… especially if he wanted to pick up his meal before he groomed the horses.

He stood up groggily, wrapping his warm blankets about him as he stumbled from darks stall and over to Satan's. The horse stared at him through frighteningly intelligent eyes, looking slightly panicked at his appearance. The horse's face was covered almost completely in a large white marking, and his legs were white all the way up past its knees. He was a beautiful horse, though slightly smaller than the rest, he exuded a sort of greatness that the rest couldn't compare to.

Naruto opened the stall door and stepped into the stall. Satan eyed him curiously as the blond approached him, not quite sure what to make of the human that was so much tinier than any others he had seen before. The black horse stepped forward, flaring his nostrils and inhaling the horse-scent of the boy. Nartuto set his hand on the white of the horses' face, rubbing in calming circles.

"Why are you being so obnoxious, ya big beast?"

Big brown eyes stared back at him, uncomprehending, yet finely pointed ears fixed on his voice.

Naruto found a comfortable spot in the corner of the stall and lie down, talking about various things to the white-splattered horse. Satan followed him, listening to the soothing sound, slowly relaxing. The blond finally fell asleep to the sound of his own voice.

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A/N- I am in love with this story now… And don't worry, Sasuke and Naruto meet in the next chapter (which I am working on right now).

Oh! And in response to an anon. review that I got: Why yes! I do actually know what I am talking about when I comes to horses… cause I actually train them. Haha… yep, I actually waste away all of my spare time working with crazy things that nobody else wants to deal with. And then I have my own crazy ones to deal with… So yep, I need reviewers to tell me if I go to much into a "horse tangent" and not enough into the story. (though this chapter doesn't count, cause it was all necessary I tell you!)

Thank you all for reading! Now review! (they make me update faster! Cause its like peer pressure I tell you!)


	3. Chapter 3

A/N- So I was home all day today, and I had a notebook… and a lot of time on my hands. So I wrote this whole chapter down BY HAND! I know! Gasp! I'm one of those people who detests writing by hand at any time. Bleh. So yeah, thanks to all of my amazing reviewers!!

Warnings: Blood, not treating children nicely, flogging (some call it 'whipping' but I think that sounds too pleasant.)

Disclaimer: I still don't own anything.

Thanks again to all of my reviewers! Generally I try to reply to everyones, though I cant for anonymous reviews. But still, I love all of you guys.

Also, on a side-note, Naruto has no "amazing powers" with horses. He is just a naturally gentle and calm person, and he has a knack with them. Plus, working with horses everyday makes me laugh at the idea of someone working with horses and having no problems. Which also answers another question I got a lot of—no Naruto is not going to just hop on Satan and have an amazing horse. (hahahaha) I wish that happened in the real world… but then I would be poor, cause I wouldn't have anything to train…

Allright, enough with the a/n ness! On with the chapter!

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Chapter 3

A hoof to the stomach was not a pleasant way to be woken up. Actually, it was most likely one of the worst alarms that Naruto had ever encountered.

Satan spun and twisted in his large stall, anger in his wide, dark eyes. The blond stood up quickly ,not wanting to be on the receiving end of one of those kicks again. He limped to the stall door as fast as he could; the pain in his torso where he'd been kicked almost making him double over. Satan charged him, lashing out with both hoof and teeth, ripping a gaping hole in Naruto's shirts sleeve and leaving a painful bruise.

The blond quickly escaped the stall, bolting the door firmly behind him. He jumped out of the way just barely in time to avoid Satan's teeth coming at him from over the stall door.

He sank to the ground in front of the stall, resting his back on the door that was shaking from the horses' frantic pawing.

A dark shadow passed over him, and for the first time Naruto noticed the black-haired boy smirking at him.

"That was intelligent, idiot. May I ask why you are sleeping in the stall with the most dangerous horse in the kingdom?"

Naruto looked at the other boy angrily. Who was this kid, anyway! And where did he get off insulting his VAST intelligence! He went to stand up and yell at the other boy when Satan let out an ear-shattering scream and lashed out towards the boy.

The dark-haired boy immediately backhanded the horse on the jaw, and Satan backed off, gnashing his teeth angrily.

"How dare you hit that horse!" Naruto screamed angrily at the boy, even more pissed than before. "Are you such a fucked up, brain dead, self centered bastard that you can't see that the horse is terrified of you! And obviously he has a reason to be, you fucktard!!"

The other boy was speechless, and his face reddened from anger.

"How dare you talk to me like that!" The usually stoic boy yelled back.

"Ill talk to you however I fucking want, you're a nobody if you hit animals just because you're too lazy and stupid to solve the problem in a nice way!"

"Why you little…"

"Prince Sasuke, King Itachi wanted to know if you wished to dine with him this morning." A servant addressed the black-haired boy.

Naruto paled considerably. Prince? If his new employer heard about this, Naruto was as good as dead.

Sasuke looked back to the blond when the servant left, frowning at the sudden look of fear on the blonde's face. He had been exhilarated yelling at someone and having them yell back at him. People were usually too afraid of his brother's anger to show him anything other than the utmost obedience.

"I assume you are Itachi's new stable boy then, correct?" Sasuke stated, knowing that is was useless to do anything other than get straight to the point now that the boy knew who he was.

"I have two horses of my own that I want you to add to your work. They are my future warhorses through, and if an idiot like you makes them soft I will make sure you are punished."

Naruto shook with anger. This boy was probably twelve or so—not older than Naruto by much—and he was bossing him around and trying to threaten him! Screw him being a prince; Naruto would not stand for such treatment!

"You bastard! I don't care who you are! I know more about how to treat other creatures than you ever will, and if you think that having a happy animal makes them 'soft' than you are even more messed up and spoiled than I thought before!"

To say Sasuke was surprised was an understatement. The kid was still standing up to him, even after he knew whom he was?

And yet Sasuke could not bring himself to say anything more than a whispered "idiot" as he signaled the two horses he wanted the blond to look after.

Naruto almost peed his pants with internal laughter. Both of the Prince's horses were…. Black.

Black!!!

He started to wonder if perhaps the entire royal family was so vain that they couldn't even ride a horse that would clash with their hair color.

"This is star, and that is indigo." Sasuke introduced the two horses.

"Why do you all him indigo?" Naruto asked curiously, while Sasuke wondered if the boy even remembered that he was angry a moment ago.

"I call him that because he is black."

"…? But… indigo is blue… not black."

"Exactly."

"That makes no sense!"

"Maybe because its not supposed to."

"… You're a bastard, you know that right?"

"Hn. Idiot"

And so Sasuke left to get his breakfast, and the sun rose to light the world around sparkling silver.

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Naruto walked next to Satan slowly, laughing as the horse ripped the grass off and chewed frantically.

"Jeez horse, you would think you hadn't eaten in a month, and… Hey! Don't give me that look! I feed you three times a day—I know that you eat. I'm actually quite surprised that you are not grotesquely fat."

The horse had the dignity to look offended, but went right back on eating grass.

Naruto couldn't believe he had been here for only a month. He had so many horses to take care of that time all had started to blend, and he felt as though he had always rested here.

This was his favorite part of the day, though. He would take Satan out and just walk around the castle grounds. The horse would find a good place to graze and Naruto could just sit and observe the castle's inhabitants. Whether the servants, or knights, or nobles, they would always have something interesting to do.

His favorite time to come out was on Thursdays, when he and Satan would go and watch Sasuke's combat training on indigo and star.

The blond also took special enjoyment in watching the prince fall off once or twice every lesson, but that was a secret just between him and Satan.

It was the first Thursday of his second month there that Naruto did something he would come to regret for a long time after.

He had been walking Satan (whom was slowly warming up to the blond) towards where they would always go for grass to watch Sasuke ride. He cane to the place only to se Sasuke on foot, covered in dust, and swearing at star. He had obviously had another unpleasant run-in with the ground.

It was when Sasuke lifted his crop that Naruto went over to him, dragging Satan away from the grass he was inhaling.

The crop met with a resounding "thwack!" right on the mare's sensitive nose. Sasuke's hand rose again and again, following the horse as she shied away from him, cursing at her for his inability as a rider.

"You cursed, stupid beast! How dare you try to throw me!!"

"Stop it you bastard!" a clear voice rang across the courtyard, and the crop froze in mid-air. "What the hell are you doing, beating her like that! You're the one that needs to be smacked, you little ass!"

The people in the courtyard were deathly still as Naruto yanked the crop from Sasuke's grasp, throwing it to the side. Star immediately pulled her reins away, running to hide behind Satan and Naruto, seeking the protection of her herd.

Naruto huffed, suddenly wondering why Sasuke's eyes went wide.

That is, until a hand grabbed the back of his shirt and lifted him up effortlessly to meet angry, blood red eyes.

"You dare disrespect my brother, you mangy gutter rat?" Naruto cringed as the King looked straight at him, shaking him by his neck.

"Will you not even apologize? Not even beg for your pitiful life?"

The blond shook, but he couldn't bring himself to say anything. He wasn't sorry; he couldn't let something like that happen to an innocent creature.

Satan went crazy behind him when the servants came to take him away; he smelled the fear coming from his human. He struggled until six men took him forcefully away.

"It is a pity then," Itachi barely whispered while watching the ordeal with Satan. "You are the best stable hand that I have had, an your death will be upsetting for my plans."

"Um… brother… perhaps you shouldn't kill him then." Sasuke piped in, and Naruto was amazed. Sasuke was sticking up for him. "He's just an idiot and he is too stupid to understand what he does. Perhaps simply discipline him?"

Never mind. Naruto thought. He hated that bastard!

"I am not an idiot!" He yelled, gasping as his own shirt cut off his air.

"Fine then," Itachi smiled evilly at Naruto, putting him down on the ground. "I wont kill you, as you are still useful."

Naruto practically melted with relief.

"Follow me though, you must be punished still for such behavior, and I will make sure nothing like this will ever happen again." Itachi gave him a terrifying look, and Naruto followed along obediently.

They went into the castle, leaving the chaos behind them. Naruto looked at the king's back nervously as they entered a dark room.

His hands were secured to chains hanging from the way (though they were large on him, most likely not meant to us on children). His shirt was pulled up to expose his back.

"Naruto" The blond shivered from fear at the King's voice. "I will not tolerate any disobedience in my household."

With that a long whip came soaring onto Naruto's exposed back. He tried to hold back his screams, but after a few more lashes he couldn't contain them.

"Apologize, Naruto, apologize for your disobedience."

Naruto cried and screamed, trying to form words as pain seared sown his back with every lash.

"I…I… I'm sorry! Please forgive me! I'll be good; I swear I will be good. It hurts! Please stop, I'll be good!"

Itachi stopped his hand, looking down at the twelve year old back. It looked gruesome, like ground meat. It was sure to leave scars for the rest of the child's life.

He called in some servants to get the boy bandaged up and sent back to his cot in Satan's stall.

Itachi definitely noticed the guilty look on his brother's face as the blond was carried out unconscious.

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A/N- Ahh… poor Naruto. He was just sticking up for the poor horsie.

so what do you all think is going to happen now? I love when I get reader's predictions. They make me happy.

Review, review, review!!


	4. Chapter 4

A/N- Haha. I updated really fast! Mainly because all of my reviewers are amazing, and have been pressuring me into writing another chapter. I have also found the best method for me to actually get things written is to have a spiral notebook completely dedicated to writing, and whenever I see it write down a paragraph or 2. It makes things so much easier to write, and it helps you get inspired and write a lot at some times.

Warnings: cute 12 year old boy fluff!

Disclaimer: I still don't own anything.

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**Chapter 4**

A knock sounded through grandiose hardwood doors, startling the black-haired boy from his daydreaming.

"Little Brother, what are you doing in there that is so secretive that it requires locked doors?"

Sasuke's cheeks turned pink as he flung the door open.

"I'm not doing THAT! I'm just thinking, or am I not allowed to just think for a little while?"

"Thinking, hm? Might I inquire as to what has so caught your interest? Itachi internally smirked—he knew exactly what his brother was so thoughtful about.

"It's nothing… just… stuff."

"Stuff, eh? This couldn't b about a little boy wit bright blond hair, pretty blue eyes and a bloody messed up back, could it?"

Sasuke flinched. He HAD been thinking about Naruto, but how did his brother know?

"It's written all over your face, little brother." Itachi practically read his mind.

"Oh." Sasuke bowed his head ashamedly. Only his brother was able to make him feel so much like a child.

"Aw, does baby brother have a crush on Na-ru-to?" Itachi teased, flicking Sasuke's forehead.

"Of course I don't! I mean… it's just… he's the first person to treat me like a normal person."

"And you have a crush on him…"

"…maybe…"

"In that case, I wont kill him for any reason, ok little brother? But you mush be sixteen before you can use him as a bed slave."

Sasuke's head shot up. A bed slave? He wasn't naïve, and he knew all about sex, but having the stable boy as his partner?

"I wouldn't want to take him away from the horses." Sasuke whispered quietly.

Sasuke had felt guilty when those big blue eyes had stared at him accusingly while he hit Star. The boy obviously didn't understand that Star was just a stupid animal.

Itachi noticed that his brother had zoned out again and headed for the door.

"Uh… Itachi… wait…" Sasuke had a great idea to show the blond that he was sorry!

"Well, what do you think about getting Naruto his own horse? I mean… so that I could have a companion my age to ride with."

Itachi raised a delicate eyebrow. "You may give him one of this years fillys to train. Do no give him one of the valuable ones though."

Sasuke's dark eyes lit up. "Of course! Thank you so much big brother!"

The elder just shook his head and left the room. His little brother was forgetting the ordeal Naruto just went through—it was highly unlikely that the blond would be very happy to see Sasuke ever again.

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White-hot searing pain shot through Naruto's back as he awoke. He felt the cracking of newly formed scabs as he tried to get up. He still had to do his work today, or he wouldn't even get his meal for that day.

His arms gave out from the pain, and he landed face-first back onto his cot. He heard Satan walk over to him, and let out a scream when the soft horse nose prodded his wounded back.

He had to get up. It was already starting to get light outside, and Itachi would be down in less than two hours.

Naruto flinched as he thought of his employer. He had to get up, he had to be perfect from now on. He couldn't endure another 'punishment.'

He almost shot up at the sound of the bolt on Satan's stall coming undone. Insead he groaned from pain as he twitched his head as far as he could to face the door.

Sasuke entered Satan's stall, hoping that the stupid horse didn't try anything. Luckily, the horse just pinned its ears back and continued to nuzzle Naruto's cot, trying to make the boy feel better without actually touching him.

The Prince winced when he heard a groan come from the blond, and had to hold back a shudder at the sight of the blood-soaked bandages covering the boy's back.

"P…p…rince.. Sa..su..ke…" Naruto tried to say, his voice still hoarse from screaming. He tried to get up again—he couldn't.

"Don't try to get up Naruto, Itachi wont make you work until you have started to heal. Here, I brought you some food."

Naruto almost cried at the sight of oatmeal, glad to have something that would be easy on his throat. He twitched his hand towards the spoon but flinched as pain ran straight from his shoulder to his back.

"Don't try to move, stupid. I'll feed you." Sasuke lifted oatmeal to meet the blonde's cherry-red lips.

Naruto soon finished the whole bowl of oatmeal, and was grateful for the affect that it had on his throat.

"Thanks." Naruto blushed cutely at the dark haired boy, earning a blush and nod in return.

"Naruto… well… I'm… you see… I am.." Sasuke looked away. Why couldn't he just say it? He wanted to, but it went against every thing he had ever been taught.

"You don't have to apologize." Naruto cut off his train of thought. "but thank you anyway for trying to. It means a lot." The blond smiled. "I'm sure that I'll survive."

"I…I asked my brother to let you get your own horse." Sasuke blurted, embarrassed by his half-assed apology. "He said you could pick one of this years fillys and train it yourself."

Big sky-blue eyes looked delightfully astonished. "Thank you so much Sasuke!" The blond smiled through his pain, tears of joy welling up in his eyes.

Sasuke smiled back at somebody for the first time since his parents had died.

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A/N- See, that was kinda cute, right? I have never written fluff before, so uh… it could be crap.. but I hope that its not.

Sorry for this chapter being relatively short, but hey, I updated really fast, so no complaining

Review, review, review!!


	5. Chapter 5

A/N- Here it is… chapter 2

A/N- Sorry for the wait! I was actually inspired to write again by a reviewer this week, and frankly, I do love this story so you all should not worry about me NEVER updating… cause I always get to it eventually.

Also, I was upset at first by the lack of reviews for my last chapter… but then I got more over the last month or so… and now I'm happy. (sorry, I'm sensitive and get hurt by not getting reviews!)

Warnings: Not beta'd, not even read through a second time by me. So forgive any random, stupid mistakes.

Disclaimer: I still don't own anything.

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**Chapter 5**

Naruto had woken up even earlier than usual that morning. It had been two weeks since his whipping ordeal, and his wounds had healed for the most part, though the scars on his back were still a fresh and vivid red.

The blond sat up in his cot, stretching his back and smiling as he stood up in the dark stall. He greeted Satan as the horse stumbled over to him in a sleepy haze. "Poor, innocent little horse, did I wake you up?" he asked sarcastically.

Satan pouted in a way that only horses can manage, and rested his nose on the cot closing his eyes once more.

Naruto went through his morning chores, whistling (badly) to himself all the while. He groomed all of Itachi's mounts till they shone in the early-morning light and moved onto Star and Indigo. He had taken more time with the two horses lately, feeling bad for them and the master they had to deal with all the time.

Sure, Sasuke was nice to him two weeks ago when he had brought him food. And sure, trying to buy his forgiveness with a horse was pretty damn nice too. Yet when it all came down to it, Naruto just couldn't forget how Sasuke had treated poor Star. The mare was constantly nervous, and even shied away from Naruto when he would try to groom her face.

It was simply disgusting that such a kind-hearted mare would be afraid of humans because of ill treatment. Yet Naruto knew he couldn't do anything about it, for fear of Itachi simply killing him next time. So Naruto worked as hard as he could to make the time Sasuke's horses had with him pleasant, and hoped that perhaps the boy would learn to be more of the calm horse-person like Itachi was.

Naruto had to admit that even though the King scared the living hell out of him, Itachi had a classic personality that horses tend to like. He doesn't overreact to anything and is a strong 'herd leader', while at the same time horses would respect him enough not to try anything. The blond supposed those were the aspects of the King that made him a good (if not renowned for his ruthlessness with humans) leader.

Naruto put the horses back into their stalls and got them fed. He ran to get his own food from the servant who always distributed food to the other non-noble inhabitants of the castle from the kitchen's back door.

He was surprised when he hit something hard and toppled to the ground with it, rolling over and hitting his still sore back.

"Ouch! Ow, ow, ow… Ow!" Naruto stood up and did a little dance to shake off the pain.

"Watch were you are going, stupid!" The kid that Naruto had crashed into yelled angrily. He was very odd looking, with wild brown hair and red triangle tattoos under both of his eyes. He was wearing the same outfit as Naruto, the black tunic and brown breeches that labled him as a servant in the royal household. "Look, you made me spill my food! Now I'm going to be hungry all day, I can't believe you!"

Naruto noticed the oatmeal streaked all over the ground around them, along with a half-eaten fruit and some strips of what looked to be leftover chicken. "Oh my god! I'm so sorry… I.. I didn't mean too!" The blonde went to go pick up what remained of the peeled orange, looking at the dirt-covered fruit sadly. He felt so guilty, he knew what it was like to only have one meal a day, and now he had ruined this kid's! "I.. um… I was just about to get my food, I'll give it to you! I'm really very sorry."

The brunet looked down at the blond and suddenly smiled. "Ok then, mate! You should have just said so in the first place! Now lets go get your food, so I can eat my breakfast!" The kid gave a hearty laugh and slapped Naruto on the back.

At this point in time, our dearest blond was wondering why he was the only one with bad enough luck to run into a bipolar kid…

"By the way, shortie, my name's Kiba, and I help with the hunting dogs! What about you?"

"Uh… I'm Naruto. I'm the King's and the Prince's stable boy." Naruto collected his food from the servant by the kitchen and handed it to Kiba, mentally waving goodbye to his food. The brunet snatched the food up and immediately dug into it.

"Oh!" the brunet exclaimed through a mouthful of food, "you're the kid who yelled at the prince a few weeks ago! I heard about that! That's so awesome, man. I wish I had the balls to yell at that little brat sometime! But the king… hey wait… why are you even still alive?"

Naruto barely processed what Kiba was saying, he was so transfixed on the brunet chowing down on his only meal. Ahh… if only it was his!

"Uh.. Naruto? Did you hear me?"

Naruto jumped as if shaken awake, smiling embarrassedly. "Whoops! Sorry, I guess I zoned out for a minute! And I'm still alive because, well… Prince Sasuke asked the king not to kill me."

Kiba just stared at him, shocked. "The Prince stood up for you?!"

Naruto nodded and frowned. "yeah, but he's still an asshole! I hate that bastard so much!" He pumped his fist in the air for emphasis. Kiba laughed as he set aside an empty plate.

"We should hang out more, shortie! It's not often I find someone I like as much as you!" Naruto blushed with happiness at the comment. He had never really had friends before, unless you count the four-legged ones. And Kiba was ok by his standards, and obviously he knew something about animals if he worked with dogs.

The two boys parted to go back to their work, both feeling a little bit more content than they had in a while.

--

Naruto couldn't even focus anymore, he was that hungry. He had already exercised the horses that Itachi hadn't chosen to ride that day, and now it was the heat of a very warm afternoon, and he still had yet to hear from the Prince as to which horse he would be riding that day.

Naruto had just sat down when he heard the sound of footsteps entering the stables. He stood up immediately when he recognized not only the prince, but the king as well.

Itachi looked at Naruto, sizing up the boy's exhausted appearance. "Why were you sitting instead of doing chores that I know you could be doing, Naruto?"

The blond shuddered and looked down, scuffing his foot along the floor. "I'm sorry, highness. I was just exhausted and was.."

"There are no excuses for laziness, Naruto. So do not try and make any ever again. You will not receive your meal tomorrow morning as punishment, and if I ever see you lazing around again you will receive a harsher punishment." The blond's eyes watered momentarily at the prospect of another morning without food, only to be quickly blinked away.

"Yes, your highness, I apologize for my laziness." Naruto said almost robotically, head still down. It was that moment that Sasuke chose to step in.

"We are going to go look at the foals for this year right now Naruto, and you are going to come with us and choose yours." Sasuke looked at the blond, noticing the boy's eyes light up again.

"Oh!" Naruto swiftly bowed his head. "Thank you highness!" He smiled at Itachi, blatantly ignoring Sasuke, which was something that didn't escape the king.

"You should thank my little brother, Naruto. I find no reason for you to have your own horse, but my little brother desires a riding companion and you are around his age. Plus, he will be finished with his training by the time you are able to ride the horse you get, so it should work out well."

Naruto internally sighed. He didn't want to be that Sasuke bastards riding partner! "Thank you, Prince Sasuke." The blond hated the sound of his own voice forming those words.

--

Naruto trailed behind the two royal brothers all the way to the far end of the castle, which he had never been to before. What lay there amazed Naruto to no end. Fields of mare's and foals lay before him, with a separate field next to it for just-weaned foals.

"Naruto, you may only look at the fillies. There is no need for a servant to get a colt that will one day have to be cut. It is too much hassle." The king said, looking bored.

Naruto nodded, unsure of what to do, and feeling very dizzy. It wasn't until the Prince grabbed his hand and forcibly dragged him out into the middle of the field that he realized what he should do.

He walked around looking at foals, immediately dismissing ones that he knew were much too nice for the likes of him, and others that looked dull or mean.

He kept walking until he came upon a pair of blue eyes just like his own looking up at him. The foal was perfect. She was a paint with the lightest shade of brown—almost yellow— and white, all swirling together on her small body. Her eyes stuck out like two sapphires as she looked at him with intelligent eyes.

Naruto walked close to the foal, his eyes downward and his shoulders facing the ground to appear non-threatening. The filly met him halfway, a soft pink nose meeting his hand.

"I suppose this is the one you want then." He heard Sasuke say from behind him.

"Yes, Prince Sasuke. She is perfect."

"If you ask me, I just think it is a weird looking animal. I guess it suits you though, doesn't it, idiot?"

Naruto was too entranced to react. Itachi came over with a servant who held the little filly's halter and haltered up the horse, handing the lead to Naruto.

That's when it hit Naruto. He, the unworthy orphan, was finally getting what he had dreamed of forever. His very own horse.

And that's when he passed out.

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A/N- Ok, so things both got better for Naruto in this chapter… or did they? How will his passing-out episode go over, especially when Itachi and Sasuke learn that he gave his food away! Dun, dun, dun!

So tell me what you think about this chapter, cause I have mixed feelings about it!

Review, review, review!!


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